The Foundational Org Chart

The Traditional Org Chart

We’ve all seen traditional org charts with the CEO or President of an organization standing alone at the top of the chart and lines reaching down through various levels to the “bottom” of the company.

We can do a lot better. I’d like to propose that we all rewrite our respective org charts from a more foundational perspective - whether you are the CEO and can rewrite it for the whole organization, or you are a leader within your organization who has people who are in your charge.

Here’s a simple example of how this works: put the employees closest to the customer at the very top of the chart and work down, until the people most removed from the customer AND who have the most impact on the overall direction and strategy are at the bottom.

Ultimately, the C-suite ends up being the most removed from the customer. This makes sense, because those folks should be busy working on strategy, goal setting, and long-term thinking (hopefully, those folks are still making time during their weeks to interact with customers, whether that is by taking a turn on the tech support line, walking the stores, or working at a POS station for a short time).

While having customer interactions should be a priority for EVERYONE in a company, the reality is that executives do need to spend most of their time working ON the business and not working IN the business. They are creating the foundation of an organization, which supports all others in the company. Conceptualizing an org chart in a foundational manner is a physical reminder that leaders need to be creating processes that support their teams and better support their customers.

Here’s an example of what this might look like:

If you are in a customer focussed business, it only makes sense that the customer experience is paramount and that the company’s structure, systems, and processes are aligned in delivering a great experience.

The Hybrid Org Chart

What if you are a mid-level manager or executive within an organization who doesn’t have control over the overall org chart, but is still responsible for a team of people? That’s where the hybrid org chart comes into play. Look at how Joshua is placed within the traditional org chart, reporting to his CEO, but still prioritizes his thinking and structures to support his team.

In a perfect world, Joshua would be able to speak freely within his company and introduce the idea of adopting the Foundational Org Chart for all. But, perhaps this idea isn’t received well, or he doesn’t feel safe raising an idea such as this. No problem. Joshua can align his systems, processes, and thinking in the manner of a Hybrid Org Chart.

Why You Should Choose This Structure

It doesn’t matter if you have someone that you report to (everyone does: an employee reports to a manager, a CEO reports to a board, and a board is responsible to shareholders) - if you have people who turn to you for guidance you should consider adopting this model for your org chart. Codifying those relationships in this manner will help you focus your thoughts, actions, policies and procedures.

When you become a rock-solid foundation for those in your charge and spend your time supporting your team and those who rely on you, you maximize their ability to succeed. When individuals succeed, teams succeed. When teams succeed, entire organizations are successful.

The Foundational Org Chart

The Traditional Org Chart